Global Rallycross Championship coming to BMS

BRISTOL — The extreme action at Bristol Motor Speedway is going to get a little more extreme this summer.

It was announced on Saturday at the track’s media center, the Global Rallycross Championship will be coming to BMS on July 20. It’s part of a day-night doubleheader that will feature Thompson Metals Monster Truck Madness in the nightcap.

Global Rallycross Championship combines four-wheel racing with unique course designs on dirt and asphalt. They include drift turns, jumps and water elements.

There will be heat races, followed by a total of 10 drivers to compete in a winner-take-all final to determine the Global Rallycross Champion. Defending series champion Tanner Foust headlines the event. Brian Deegan, Bucky Lasek, Dave Mirra and Ken Block are some of the others who will represent the GRC this season.

Jerry Caldwell, Bristol Motor Speedway Executive Vice President and General Manager, said the track has been looking at bringing the GRC to “The World’s Fastest Half-Mile” for a while.

“Since we saw our first Global Rallycross Championship event, we envisioned the potential of marrying the most extreme speedway with the most extreme racing series,” he said. “Seeing these incredible cars on Bristol’s high banks, as well as a few jumps and new corners we will create, will make a spectacular show that everyone will want to see.”

The cars can accelerate from 0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds with courses designed ot be less than one mile per lap from standing start to flying finish, complete with a 70-foot crossover jump.

Obviously, BMS will provide an even more unique setting, although the layout is still being worked on.

“We will use some of the banking in turns 1 and 2, go down in the infield and come back up on the back straightaway,” said Colin Dyne, Global Rallycross CEO. “We haven’t finalized the exact layout yet, we’re still in the process of doing that. With the use of the infield, there are a lot of things we can do.”

Bristol Motor Speedway is one of four NASCAR tracks owned by Speedway Motorsports which will host the series this season. The others are New Hampshire, Atlanta and Chalotte Motor Speedways. The Bristol event will be the final round before the X-Games in Los Angeles and a venue which GRC targeted.

“The addition of Bristol Motor Speedway to the schedule is something GRC is thrilled to announce,” Dyne said. “It is a track that has a long standing racing legacy, has incredible track features and it will provide the ultimate driving experience for our drivers.”

Caldwell added it was a natural fit to put the GRC with the Monster Truck show which will include Bigfoot and War Wizard, as well as stunts by high-flying motorcycles and Megasaurus, a fire-breathing, car-eating robotic dinosaur.

“It’s going to be a great event,” Caldwell said. “We had quite an event there with the monster trucks and an established crowd. It was the perfect time and slot in our schedule to drop in Global Rallycross.”